I have always been against the idea of using stackers to move cables 1.25" away from framing horizontally but still right behind the drywall for just that reason. For some reason someone decided the 1.25" did not have to be back from the drywall. Harry homeowner hanging pictures may not be looking for studs, the Mrs says "right here" and that is where they run in the screw, nail or drill.

HI there, well I did the install with the advice on here, thank you all!! i pole mounted 200 amp breaker, the old 3 wire feed to the back of the house from the pole, into a terminal box that splits a feeder into the garage, a feeder into the house, a feeder into a room upstairs above a garage. (terminal box has no ocpd) its just a terminal box, load calculations is all under max amps, ok so the inspectors liked that, as all lines protected to all out buildings. some stuff grandfathered in some not. terminal box is grounded to a ground rod thats all. ok i know needs more...

so heres my question, the garage, the upstairs room i want to run a ground wire to a 8 foot ground rod. one for each panel. space them 6 or more feet each, i want to make each breaker box a 4 wire. (i looked at nec 250, but?) the main house is a 3 wire bonded neutral/ground panel. grandfathered in, i know thats not a main ground return path??, any suggestions on where to ground the wire besides rods?

one inspector said if i take all grounds off each panel for each building old or new and have hot, hot, separate neutral and separate ground using a ground rod for each panel he would sign off, the other said no you cant. and i cant dig up the lines that go to each building. they met code in 1991.there are no pipes, lines etc except a propane copper line to all buildings but its not used as a ground at any location. so any suggestions? im 90% done except for the ground issue. i know im supposed to have 4 wire on all new work. thank you for helping.

You can't just drive a rod and call it a ground, it must be bonded the neutral.250.4(A)(5)

Quote

(5) Effective Ground-Fault Current Path. Electrical equipment and wiring and other electrically conductive material likely to become energized shall be installed in a manner that creates a low-impedance circuit facilitating the operation of the overcurrent device or ground detector for high-impedance grounded systems. It shall be capable of safely carrying the maximum ground-fault current likely to be imposed on it from any point on the wiring system where a ground fault may occur to the electrical supply source. The earth shall not be considered as an effective ground-fault current path.

"one inspector said if i take all grounds off each panel for each building old or new and have hot, hot, separate neutral and separate ground using a ground rod for each panel he would sign off,"

"the other said no you cant"

My head hurts! How could this occur here in the USA?? These guys licensed?? Must they go for any CEUs?

OK, I see the point of an old, old situation, that is questionable IF it ever passed any inspections from day one. OK, sometimes the 'grandfather' thing can be used (here we call it REHAB, but....this sounds worse every post.

HI, yes it does get worse with every post, I have fought with these three inspectors from day one on this project. i am volunteering and i know what i am supposed to do, then the other inspectors come in change stuff, they are all in a "i know better then the last guy attitude" so i am 90% done, so far no ground rods at all the outbuildings. i did not unhook any old work that was grounded. i did not ground to any buried propane line, (there is 400 feet of it) i know boom..

the old 3 wire/components in the outbuildings did pass code in 1990 or 1991, it was done right for 3 wire, job looked great who ever did it. no connections by any metal to any other building, this whole project was a headache from the start, there is no way tie to the old buildings into a 4 wire system as digging up hundreds feet of wire isnt going to happen. i think it is safe there as 3 wire.

ok so the last 2 things is, there is a terminal box that is installed on the back of the house like i said earlier, and it is a 3 wire from the 200 amp breaker on the pole that goes into that terminal box.. so its 3 wire. i ran 4 wire from that outside terminal box to the garage breaker box and the upper, (call it a apartment) breaker box. hot, hot, neutral, ground. each ground is bonded to each box. neutrals are each separate, not bonded or tied to ground at the boxes.

so i thought i did each thing to code, then the 2nd inspector says ok, but i want each new box to have a ground rod.ok sure 6 feet apart? do i really need them? its all 3 wire except the 2 new boxes. the old work he wants each box to have a ground rod too, i looked at section 250.

so before i take up up serious drinking etc, could some one please, please tell me what if anything i am doing wrong...i really thought i was doing code before this mess now i wonder...